Signs like "New wallpaper available on the carousel!" or "Update background" appear on Xiaomi with enviable regularity - sometimes several times a day. These notifications are not just annoying: they consume battery power, distract from work and take up space in the notification panel. Worse, standard swipe removal does not help - after an hour everything repeats.
The problem lies in the MIUI branded shell, where com.miui.gallery aggressively promotes smart wallpaper change. Even after manually switching off, notifications can return after a reboot or system update. In this article, we will explore all possible ways to block the wallpaper carousel, including hidden settings and radical methods for advanced users.
Why Xiaomi is so obsessive about changing wallpaper?
The reason lies in Xiaomi's business model: the company makes money not only from selling smartphones, but also from integrated advertising. MIUI, which:
- 📱 Collects data about user preferences (which wallpaper you choose, how often you change them).
- 💰 Promotes paid themes from the Mi Themes store (even if you don't use them).
- 🔄 Supports "live" wallpaper, which are updated on a schedule (weather, time of day).
- 📊 Increases engagement – the more often you interact with the system, the higher the scores for investors.
On the models of Redmi and Poco with budget firmware, the intrusiveness of notifications is higher than on the flagships of Xiaomi 13/14. This is not a coincidence: the marketing strategy assumes that users of budget devices are more likely to agree to “free” wallpaper with advertising.
Method 1: Disable notifications through the settings of the Gallery application
The most obvious method is to block notifications directly in the application that generates them.
- Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
- In the search box, type "Gallery" (or com.miui.gallery).
- Slip on the app, then select Notifications.
- Turn off the display notification slider.
⚠️ Attention: On some firmware (MIUI 13 for Poco X3 Pro, for example, this method only works until the first reboot. After the restart, the notifications can return.
Are the settings of the Gallery app open?
Is the main notification slider turned off?
Have additional categories of notifications (e.g. “Recommendations”) been verified?
Is the phone reloaded for checkup?
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If notifications keep coming, it means that they're not just from the Gallery, but from other system services, so let's move on to the next way.
Method 2: Blocking through “Special Permits”
MIUI has a hidden section where you can limit the background activity of applications, which helps when the standard notification shutdown fails:
- Go to Settings → Applications → Special Permissions → Autorun.
- Find the Gallery and turn off the autostart.
- Go back and select Background Limitation (or Battery Optimization on newer versions).
- For the Gallery, set a limit Strict or Limited.
| Setting up | The effect | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Shutting down autostart | The gallery does not start itself when the phone is turned on. | Miniatures in the gallery can be updated more slowly |
| Strict background restriction | The app doesn't work in the background | Cloud albums will not be synchronized. |
| Limitation of notifications | All push notifications are blocked | Important notifications (e.g., about the completion of the download) may be missing |
⚠️ Attention: On Xiaomi 12T And then again, after this manipulation, the Dynamic Wallpaper function (for example, changing by time of day) may stop working.
Method 3: Using ADB to deep shut down (no root)
If the system settings don’t work, you’ll have to connect to your phone via ADB (Android Debug Bridge), a method that doesn’t require root permissions, but requires a computer and 10 minutes of time.
First, turn on USB debugging:
- Go to Settings. → The phone.
- Tap 7 times on the MIUI version until the words “You became a developer” appear.
- Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
- Activate Debugging on USB.
Now connect your phone to your PC and execute on the command line (or Terminal on Mac/Linux):
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.gallery.plugin.wallpaperThis command disables the wallpaper plugin in the Gallery, and after the reset, the carousel notifications should disappear.
What if the ADB does not recognize the device?
⚠️ Attention: On some firmware (MIUI 14 for Redmi Note 12) this command can cause a default gallery to malfunction. If the photos stop opening after you run the command, return them all back:
adb shell pm enable com.miui.gallery.plugin.wallpaperMethod 4: Remove updates for the Gallery (for older versions of MIUI)
On MIUI firmware 12 and below, wallpaper carousel notifications often appear after the Gallery app update, the solution being to roll it back to the factory version:
- Go to Settings. → Annexes → gallery → Three points (⋮) → Remove updates.
- Confirm the action.
- Turn off automatic app updates in Google Play → Settings → Auto Update.
This method doesn’t work on all devices: starting with MIUI 13, Xiaomi has removed the ability to roll back updates for system applications. If there is no “Remove Updates” button, skip this method.
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If the gallery is unstable after rolling back, clear the cache in the app settings. This won't delete your photos, but it can speed up the work.
Method 5: Radical solution - replacement of the launcher
If nothing helps, you can completely abandon the standard MIUI launcher, which is integrated with the wallpaper carousel. Alternative launchers (like Nova Launcher or Lawnchair) do not have built-in wallpaper change notifications.
How to do this:
- Install an alternative launcher from Google Play.
- Click the Home button and select the new launcher as the main one.
- In the new launcher settings, disable all options related to wallpaper (for example, in Nova Launcher: Settings → Desktop → Change Wallpaper → Disable).
Cons of this method:
- 🔄 Loss of some functions MIUI (For example, navigation gestures may work differently).
- 📱 Incorrect display of widgets from Xiaomi (weather, steps).
- 🔋 Low battery consumption due to two launchers (old stays in the system).
💡
Replacing the launcher is the only way to get rid of carousel notifications forever, but is only suitable for those willing to sacrifice branded MIUI features.
What if the notifications returned after the MIUI update?
After major system updates (MIUI 13 → MIUI 14), all settings are reset and wallpaper carousel notifications may appear again.
- Repeat steps from methods 1-3 (settings → ADB).
- Check the new permissions: MIUI 14 has a separate Notice of Content in the application settings.
- Use Tasker: Automate disabling notifications after rebooting (script settings will be required).
If the problem is repeated too often, consider turning off automatic MIUI updates:
Settings → About Phone → System Update → Three Dots (⋮) → Settings → Disable Automatic Boot⚠️ Warning: Disabling system updates may affect the security of your device. Do not do this if you are actively using mobile banking or storing sensitive data.